1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a consumable downhole packer or plug.
2. Description of the Related Art
Hydraulic fracturing (aka fracing or fracking) is an operation for stimulating a subterranean formation to increase production of formation fluid, such as crude oil and/or natural gas. A fracturing fluid, such as a slurry of proppant (i.e., sand), water, and chemical additives, is pumped into the wellbore to initiate and propagate fractures in the formation, thereby providing flow channels to facilitate movement of the formation fluid into the wellbore. The fracturing fluid is injected into the wellbore under sufficient pressure to penetrate and open the channels in the formation. The fracturing fluid injection also deposits the proppant in the open channels to prevent closure of the channels once the injection pressure has been relieved. Typically, a wellbore will intersect several hydrocarbon-bearing production zones. Each zone may have a different fracture pressure. To ensure that each zone is treated, each zone is treated separately while isolating a previously treated zone from the next zone to be treated using a frac plug.